- A tiny 1.0-liter Renault Alpine engine powers the oddball Silver Fox prototype race car.
- Despite its small engine, the Silver Fox could reach a top speed of 155 mph (250 km/h)
- Unfortunately, Officine Stampaggi Industriali collapsed before the Silver Fox went racing.
Every spring, a certain lakeside gathering in Italy becomes the epicenter of automotive excess, where the rarest, wildest, and most head-scratching cars ever built roll out for a weekend of well-dressed admiration. That place is Villa d’Este on the shores of Lake Como, and last weekend’s event delivered exactly the kind of spectacle attendees have come to expect.
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Alongside world premieres like the BMW Speedtop and the SCG 007s, one of the most peculiar race cars of the 1960s made an appearance, joining the festivities both on display and in motion.
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That car was the OSI Silver Fox, a strange, sharp-edged machine built with one goal in mind: tackling the 24 Hours of Le Mans all the way back in 1967. The car came from Officine Stampaggi Industriali (OSI), a small Italian outfit better known for producing low-volume cars for brands like Alfa Romeo, Ford, and Innocenti. But in the mid-1960s, OSI decided it was time to put its own name on something bolder, designed from scratch and built for endurance racing’s toughest stage.
A Wing on Wheels
What OSI came up with was a car that looked more like a science experiment than a Le Mans prototype. The Silver Fox was designed with a twin-hull layout, almost like a catamaran. These two narrow pods gave the car the appearance of a floating wing. On the left side, tucked behind the cockpit, sat a 1.0-liter Renault Alpine four-cylinder engine. To balance out the weight of the drivetrain, the driver was placed in the right-hand pod.
BMW Group
Three large spoilers connected the pods and could be adjusted depending on the track, helping the car find the right balance between downforce and drag. The whole setup was as unconventional as it looked, but despite the modest powertrain, the Silver Fox could reportedly hit 155 mph (250 km/h). Not bad for a car with an engine that wouldn’t look out of place in a hatchback.
Read: This 400+ HP OSI 20M TS GT Is Probably The Coolest Car You’ve Never Heard Of
Unfortunately, OSI’s dreams of endurance racing glory didn’t last. The company folded in 1968, and the Silver Fox never made it to the starting grid at Le Mans. Only one example was ever built. The good news? That lone Silver Fox survived, and it’s still running. Last weekend, it reemerged among a field of extraordinary racing prototypes at Villa d’Este, once again capturing attention with its weird proportions and ambitious spirit.
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